Method and apparatus for recording and/or reproducing data wherein padding data may be added during recording and removed during reproduction

Abstract

A data recording/reproducing apparatus in which plural disc-shaped recording/reproducing means are run in parallel. The apparatus is designed for avoiding the risk of the write/readout unit being changed in size to lower the transfer rate to raise the cost brought about by changing the number of the disc-shaped recording/reproducing means. A disc array unit 11 accesses video data of 163840 bytes equal to 40 times as many as 4096 bytes and audio data of 8192 bytes equal to twice as many as 4096 bytes to a data driving unit 11 D made up of seven HDDs with a size of, for example, 3584 bytes. An accessing control unit 12 controls data accessing to the disc array unit 11 . A data adjustment unit 25 appends a volume of nonsensical data (padding data) equal to a multiple of 3584 bytes at the time of recording, while taking out data excluding the padding data during reproduction in terms of 4096 bytes as a unit.

What is claimed is:  
     
       1. A data recording/reproducing apparatus comprising: 
       a plurality of disc-shaped recording/reproducing means for recording and/or reproducing units of video and audio data in which the data size of a unit that can be accessed at a time can be controlled by changing the number of the recording/reproducing means loaded in position during data recording; and  
       data adjustment means for appending padding data such that, if the volume of the video and audio data to be recorded is not equal to a multiple of the data size accessed at a time, the volume of the video and audio data to be recorded with the padding data appended thereto will be equal to the multiple so that an interruption between the video data and the audio data is coincident with a respective junction between units.  
     
     
       2. The data recording/reproducing apparatus as claimed in claim  1  wherein, when data recorded with the p adding data appended thereto are reproduced, said data adjustment means controls so that said padding data will no t be reproduced. 
     
     
       3. The data recording/reproducing apparatus as claimed in claim  2  wherein said video and audio data to be recorded have a format with a pre-set data size. 
     
     
       4. The data recording/reproducing apparatus as claimed in claim  3  further comprising: 
       an interface for connection to an audio/video editing controller for editing said video and audio data.  
     
     
       5. The data recording/reproducing apparatus as claimed in claim  4  wherein 
       said interface is an SCSI interface.  
     
     
       6. The data recording/reproducing apparatus as claimed in claim  3  wherein 
       said data adjustment means appends padding data in the last accessing for recording the data so that, if the volume of data to be recorded is not equal to a multiple of the data size accessed at a time, the volume of data to be recorded with the padding data appended thereto will be equal to the multiple of the data size accessed at a time.  
     
     
       7. The data recording/reproducing apparatus as claimed in claim  6  wherein 
       said data adjustment means when reproducing recorded data controls so that, during the last accessing for reproducing the recorded data, the padding data will not be reproduced.  
     
     
       8. The data recording/reproducing apparatus as claimed in claim  3  wherein 
       said data adjustment means appends padding data in each accessing for recording the data so that, if the volume of data to be recorded is not equal to a multiple of the data size accessed at a time, the volume of data to be recorded with the padding data appended thereto will be equal to the multiple of the data size accessed at a time.  
     
     
       9. The data recording/reproducing apparatus as claimed in claim  8  wherein 
       said data adjustment means when reproducing the recorded data controls so that, in each accessing for reproducing the recorded data, said padding data will not be reproduced.  
     
     
       10. The data recording/reproducing apparatus as claimed in claim  7  further comprising: 
       a circuit for calculating the parity for data recorded on a plurality of said disc-shaped recording/reproducing means.  
     
     
       11. The data recording/reproducing apparatus as claimed in claim  10  wherein 
       parity data outputted by said parity calculating circuit is recorded in a pre-set one of the plural disc driving devices.  
     
     
       12. A data recording method for recording units of video and audio data according to a format having a pre-set data size on a plurality of detachably mounted disc-shaped recording/reproducing means, comprising: 
       setting a data size of a unit that can be accessed at a time in accordance with the number of said disc-shaped recording/reproducing means loaded in position at the time of data recording;  
       appending padding data in the last accessing for recording the data such that, if the volume of the video and audio data to be recorded is not equal to a multiple of the data size accessed at a time, the volume of the video and audio data for recording with the padding data appended thereto will be equal to said multiple so that an interruption between the video data and the audio data is coincident with a respective junction between units; and  
       recording the units of said video and audio data on said disc-shaped recording/reproducing means.  
     
     
       13. A method for reproducing data recorded by the data recording method as claimed in claim  12  comprising: 
       reproducing all read-out data in each accessing for reproducing the recorded data other than the last accessing in which said padding data have been appended; and  
       reproducing the recorded data excluding said padding data in the last accessing in which said padding data have been appended.